Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Last week, I briefly touched on the topic of color theory. It's fun to experiment with different color combinations, and you might surprise yourself by selecting hues that you wouldn't normally choose but finding you really like how they look together!

Of course, a much faster way to decide which colors you want to use (and a "cheat method" that I use often myself) is to simply pick a patterned paper for your card and then incorporate the same colors into your stamped image.

I asked Trudy Sjolander if I could borrow two previously posted cards from her blog featuring 0128J Forget Troubles Kitty (drawn by artist Tammy DeYoung):

True is a master at color theory and technique, but you don't have to be a "real" artist to get good results. In this pretty card, her image colors are simply repeated from the patterned paper:

Of course, details like glitter, stitching, and elements popped up with foam tape really add pizazz to your projects, too:

I love how True finishes the insides of her cards. You can see how this one is complete with a coordinating envelope, as well:

If you stamp your image a few times and color several at once, then you can take the same colored image and use it as a springboard for layering with monochromatic papers:

The card looks completely different, even though it started with the same colored image! Here's a close-up view:

What if you don't want to use patterned paper as inspiration for coloring your stamped image? Here's a fun online tool that will select three colors randomly. Just keep spinning until you find colors that you like.

Or take it a step further and use a color wheel to help you decide. You can purchase a spinning version at an art supply store, or try this application, which allows you to select your base color and then finds various color schemes (monochromatic, analogous, complimentary, etc.) that incorporate it. There is a "randomize" button, too. Pretty nifty, huh? Have fun playing!

Sunday, February 26, 2012

When I asked Melissa to name 5-10 tools that she relies on most when she creates (besides stamps, of course), this is what she listed:

1. Milwaukee Heat Gun/Embossing Powders
2. Cuttlebug/Dies/Embossing Folders
3. Border Punches
4. Markers/Inks/Prismacolor Pencils
5. Internet--There are so many talented people sharing on the net. Whenever I need inspiration, I head to the internet.

I have to admit that I haven't pulled out my heat gun and powders for quite some time, but I've made regular use of the others tools she mentioned. How about you? Have you used any of these items lately?

It's funny how Melissa named the internet as a tool. Of course, she's absolutely right! In fact, I hope you find some inspiration of your own from today's post.

For the first project, Melissa used 10978MC Delightful Dogs #2 Clear Set:

She featured the dog image (0454F Dottie) and a saying (0381D Sittin' & Thinkin') in her adorable card:

Here are the instructions she provided:

Use a green notecard for base. Layer print panel to purple panel, leaving some space at the top to stamp “Woof” in black ink. Adhere to center of green card.

Wrap ribbon around the card and tie into a bow. Bow should be to the left side of the card. Stamp dog image in black ink onto white cardstock and color with markers. Cut image panel with rectangular dies/punches. Layer to green and purple panels. Attach image panel with foam mounting tape to right side of card.

I also asked Melissa to describe one area that she is trying to improve in regarding her own creative style, techniques, or process.

She replied, "I love it when I see a clean and simple card or project, but I have the hardest time creating with the clean and simple style. Sometimes it can take me hours to create a simple card because I tend to overthink the project I am working on."

It's funny how sometimes the seemingly most simple layouts can actually take a while to create. Take the stamps in 11014SC Brushed Calligraphy #3 Clear Set, for instance:

Now, I'm not exactly sure how long Melissa spent making this card (with 1524F Brushed Butterfly and 10077F Master Calls Butterfly as the wood mounted versions):

However, I sure love the results! Melissa incorporates great details in her "simple" cards, from the the dry embossed green piece and pumpkin orange middle panel to the double-matted butterfly image complete with glittery wings...all topped off with a pretty bow.

Layer orange print paper to scrap of green cardstock, add ribbon/bow and layer vertically to left side of the card. Ink butterfly image with a pink waterbased marker onto white cardstock and lightly watercolor around the wings. Ink sentiment with black ink and stamp onto same panel as butterfly.

Cut sentiment/butterfly panel out with circles dies/punches and layer to pink and green panels. Attach sentiment panel to card with foam mounting tape.

* * *

Thanks so much to Melissa Cash for joining us during February as our Inky Guest Designer. It's been an absolute pleasure getting to know her and seeing her wonderful projects. I hope you've enjoyed them as much as I have!

Friday, February 24, 2012

Leap Day is coming up next week, which means Steve and I will have been together for one year. Yeah, it's actually been four years, but our first date was on February 29th.

Fortunately, when we first met, he didn't try saying any of these:

Top Ten Worst Pickup Lines

10. You remind me so much of Pokemon that I just want to pick-at-choo.

9. I’m new in town. Can I have directions to your house?

8. I misplaced my teddy bear. Will you sleep with me?

7. Wow, your legs must be really tired because you have been running through my mind all night!

6. What's that in your eye? Oh, it must be a twinkle from when our eyes met!

5. Did you clean your pants with Windex, because I can totally see myself in them.

4. Those must be space pants, because your legs are outta this world.

3. Hi, my name is Justin…Justin Credible.

2. I may not be Fred Flinstone, but I can still make your Bedrock.

1. Is your name Visa, because you’re everywhere I want to be.

* * *

We ended up going to a Mediterranean restaurant and had a nice meal...while watching a belly dancer! I'm so glad our first date went better than this:

A First Date

A boy and his date were parked on a back road some distance from town, doing what boys and girls do on back roads some distance from town. Things were getting hot and heavy when the girl stopped the boy.

“I really should have mentioned this earlier, but I’m actually a hooker and I charge $20 for sex,” she said.

The boy just looked at her for a couple of seconds but then reluctantly paid her, and they did their thing.

After the cigarette, the boy just sat in the driver’s seat looking out the window. “Why aren’t we going anywhere?” asked the girl.

“Well, I should have mentioned this before, but I’m actually a taxi driver, and the fare back to town is $25.”

Thursday, February 23, 2012

We're doubling the fun this month by showing two samples using each HoneyPOP Clear Set (drawn by artist Tammy DeYoung): a 3-D card made with the Honeycomb Paper Padsand a standard greeting card.

To see what our designers made, please visit each DT member's blog and leave comments along the way. The more you comment, the better your chances are to win. (Limit one comment per blog, please.)

The blog hop starts today and ends on Sunday, February 27th at midnight Central time. Two people’s names will be drawn at random to receive a surprise Inky HoneyPOP prize pack. The winners’ names will be announced next Monday, so remember to stop back and see if you’ve won.

Once you're finished, please come back here to see my projects and leave a final comment. Happy hopping, HoneyPOP fans!

* * *

For this hop, I used 11030MC Easter Chick HoneyPOP Set from our original HoneyPOP release. With Easter around the corner, I thought you might like to see more examples of this set in action!

If you click on the photo, you'll see sparkly accents such as the glitter eggs and yellow brads:

But my favorite part, of course, is the honeycomb egg:

I used our Rainbow Honeycomb Pad and stamped the egg pattern twice. After cutting out both pieces, I adhered them together with the chick image attached in the center. This made a pop-up within in a pop-up!

Because the doubled honeycomb egg was quite thick, I scored the card at 4 1/8" and 4 3/8" so the "spine" was extra wide to accommodate it. Then I glued the doubled egg into the card.

Did you notice the cloud background? I sponged light blue dye ink over our new Cloud Stencil to create that look:

And just to show how well the HoneyPOP Clear Sets work for standard greeting cards, here's a non-honeycomb version:

I applied Glossy Accents on the egg to make it shiny, and the saying piece was sponged with chalk and attached with foam tape to make it stand out more.

The inside was pretty basic, with the saying layered on a scalloped oval for contrast:

So glad you joined us, and I hope you have an egg-ceptionally great day!

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

As stampers, we realize that color choices can make a dramatic difference in the way our projects look. Sometimes it's difficult to select colors that go together well, which is where a color wheel can be helpful:

In 1666, Sir Isaac Newton performed a prism experiment that eventually led to the development of the first color wheel. As you can see, it's a circular diagram in which colors are arranged according to their chromatic relationship.

It can sound a little complicated, but basically it means that related colors are next to each other and complementary colors are opposite on the color wheel. By picking colors from specific parts of the color wheel, we can achieve harmonious combinations that will be pleasing to the eye.

Whether you're coloring a stamped image, painting a canvas, or decorating your home, it can be useful to understand how various "color schemes" can impact the appearance of your finished project. There are several online resources that explain further about color theory, such as the ones here, here, and here (this last version is my favorite).

For today's projects, Debbie Fisher chose to work with complementary colors in her cards featuring 2244G Love Watering. These shades of light blue and salmon contrast with each other to provide vibrancy, even though the colors are very soft:

With brighter colors, you can see how using complementary colors can really make the elements stand out:

Aside from the technical terms, I think these cards are just plain pretty! Hoping you have a colorful day, Inky friends. :-)

Kamesha won the five colors of Honeycomb Paper Pads shown on Tim's creations. You can find them, along with eight other solid colors plus our new Rainbow Honeycomb Pads (and the entire updated HoneyPOP Collection), by clicking here.

Sunday, February 19, 2012

Like many of us, Melissa first learned to stamp when she saw an embossing demo in a little craft store more than 20 years ago.

"I was hooked," she says. "That day I bought some stamps, ink, embossing powder and my beloved Milwaukee Heat Gun."

She describes her stamping style as "everything from whimsy to vintage. I really don’t know how my style came to be, I think it just evolved."

On the "whimsy" side, one of the sets she chose was 10953MC Teacup Mousies #2 Clear Set (drawn by artist Tammy DeYoung):

When asked if she had any advice or tips to share with our readers, Melissa offered this: "I think you need to be open to trying new techniques and styles of stamping. Check your local stamp store for classes, there is always something new to learn."

This card shows a fun technique, which is coloring on kraft cardstock:

Swapping out the white cardstock for a darker color is something I always forget to do myself, so I think I'm going to pull out my kraft stash for next time. I also want to try layering buttons and bows.

Thanks to Melissa for sharing her adorable card, and to YOU for joining us today. Hope you have a "micey nice" rest of the weekend!

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Just on the heels of yesterday's post about Tina using a Honeycomb Pad to create her own beehive, Mario Rossi (Tim Holtz's business manager) emailed to tell us, "Never in a million years would I have thought 'honeycomb paper' and vintage in the same sentence, let alone 'tag'....the result is amazing...AND WHAT A GREAT IDEA FOR THE 12 TAGS OF 2012!!!"

If you click over to Tim's post and scroll down to step #19, you'll see it, along with several other inspiring ideas.

Since you're taking the time to watch the video, we'd like to offer you a chance to win some BLOG CANDY! After you're done, come back here and fill out the form below. We'll be giving away all five different Honeycomb Paper Pad colors that Tim used on his projects to one lucky person!

On Monday, February 20th, I'll randomly choose the winner and post that person's name...so be sure to come back and see if you've won!

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Last month at the Mesquite show, I asked Tina Covington if she would create a set of projects for our "Try It Different" Tuesday spot. She selected 11082MC Bee Benton Clear Set to use for them:

Besides liking this adorable bear, Tina says, "I had some DP (designer paper) that was a perfect match":

But, she noted, "the paper came from a 6 x 6 pad, so the quantity was small, and I was thinking maybe not everyone would have perfect paper, so I decided to make a card that anyone could make with just some strips of yellow cardstock.

"All I did was cut strips of cardstock 3/4" tall and round the corners (by hand with scissors), making each strip smaller than the one before. [I used] four of those, plus the top one, which is 1" tall. I then laid them out on a piece of black cardstock and trimmed around them, leaving a black border":

Tina continued explaining, "I then took a second piece of black cardstock and traced the whole bee hive on to it, to get a card back. I bent the top edge done of the back piece and adhered to the front one, creating a fun shaped card for Bee Benton":

I think Tina's card turned out awesome, and the unusual shape is so much fun! Here's an angled view:

But she didn't stop there:

"Now, that lead me to my next project, as I was thinking that I could create my own HoneyPOP [card]. I have made at least 12 of the HoneyPOP cards and I think I have taught different ones at least 6 times, so by now, I kinda know how it works. But, I have never tried it without a stamp to guide me. It worked, but I like [using the HoneyPOP] stamps the best! So, what I did, is I took the last card and shrunk it down on my printer to make a small pattern. I then folded it in half and traced around it on the honeycomb pad."

This is the outside of her card:

And here's that honeycomb hive she designed:

When Tina made her own beehive, she wasn't aware that we already had plans to release 11087MC Bumblebee HonetPOP Clear Set:

What's that saying about great minds thinking alike? Actually, I can't take credit for this idea. Like Tina, we'd had several customer requests for this one. Here is my sample card using the set:

And the best part, of course:

Thanks so much to Tina for sharing her innovative cards with us. Whether you decide to use regular stamp sets and experiment with your own ideas, or try the new HoneyPOP sets, we hope you'll be inspired to stamp and have a good time!

Stamp bee image in black ink onto cream cardstock and color with Copic Markers. Round corners with small corner rounder. Adhere to layer of green cardstock that you have also rounded the corners on with a small corner rounder. Apply image panel to the left side of the card using foam mounting tape.

Tie ribbon around the card and place bow on the left side, just under the stamped image. Stamp sentiment on cream scrap in black ink and cut out with oval die/punch and layer to green scallop oval cut with a die/punch. Adhere sentiment to front of card with foam tape. Add glitter glue to bee's wings.

* * *

In her online interview, Melissa said, "I really like coloring, whether it is with markers or pencils. I also like lots of layers and attention to detail and finishing touches."

As you can see, did a fantastic job with the coloring and details. Hope you're inspired to create a buzz-illion cards...or even just a few! :-)

A newspaper is a daily marvel, even a miracle. There are 1,730 of them published daily in the United States with a combined circulation of nearly 62 million. Limitless possibilities exist for error, human and mechanical. Add the crushing pressure of deadlines, and it's surprising there aren't more mistakes.

When goofs do occur, editors scurry to print corrections, even though we often prefer the misprint to the corrected version.

Here just a few samples:

1. IMPORTANT NOTICE: If you are one of hundreds of parachuting enthusiasts who bought our Easy Sky Diving book, please make the following correction: on page 8, line 7, the words "state zip code" should have read "pull rip cord."

2. It was incorrectly reported last Friday that today is T-shirt Appreciation Day. In fact, it is actually Teacher Appreciation Day.

3. There was a mistake in an item sent in two weeks ago which stated that Ed Burnham entertained a party at crap shooting. It should have been trap shooting.

4. From a California bar association's newsletter: Correction -- the following typo appeared in our last bulletin: "Lunch will be gin at 12:15 p.m." Please orrect to read "12 noon."

5. We apologize to our readers who received, through an unfortunate computer error, the chest measurements of members of the Female Wrestlers Association instead of the figures on the sales of soybeans to foreign countries.

6. In Frank Washburn's March column, Rebecca Varney was erroneously identified as a bookmaker. She is a typesetter.

7. There are two important corrections to the information in the update on our Deep Relaxation professional development program. First, the program will include meditation, not medication. Second, it is experiential, not experimental.

9. In the City Beat section of Friday's paper, firefighter Dwight Brady was misidentified. His nickname in the department is "Dewey." Another firefighter is nicknamed "Weirdo." We apologize for our mistake.

10. Just to keep the record straight, it was the famous Whistler's Mother, not Hitler's, that was exhibited. There is nothing to be gained in trying to explain how this error occurred.

11. Our newspaper carried the notice last week that Mr. Oscar Hoffnagle is a defective on the police force. This was a typographical error. Mr. Hoffnagle is, of course, a detective on the police farce.

12. Yesterday we mistakenly reported that a talk was given by a bottle-scared hero. We apologize for the error. We obviously meant that the talk was given by a battle-scarred hero.

13. In a recent edition, we referred to the chairman of Chrysler Corporation as Lee Iacoocoo. His real name is Lee Iacacca. The Gazette regrets the error.

14. Apology: I originally wrote, "Woodrow Wilson's wife grazed sheep on the front lawn of the White House." I'm sorry that typesetting inadvertently left out the word "sheep."

15. In one edition of today's Food Section, an inaccurate number of jalapeno peppers was given for Jeanette Crowley's Southwestern chicken salad recipe. The recipe should call for two, not 21, jalapeno peppers.

16. The marriage of Miss Freda vanAmburg and Willie Branton, which was announced in this paper a few weeks ago, was a mistake which we wish to correct.

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Carla said...Congrats to you, Melissa, on your GD spot! Your first projects are fantastic, but that's no surprise as you are such a great designer! Looking forward to seeing more of your projects this month!February 5, 2012 10:54 AM

Carla won 11079MC Heart Benton Clear Set, which includes the stamps that Karen used on her project earlier this week:

Speaking of prizes, last month Tanya Phillips won 11014SC Brushed Calligraphy #3 Clear Set in a blog candy drawing:

For this lovely card, she stamped the flower image in grey and painted with Twinkling H2O's to keep it soft looking, while making the sentiment darker so it stood out more:

On her second card, she embossed both the image and sentiment in white onto kraft paper and colored with pencils:

Wow, what a great idea...this really gives the stamps a dramatic appearance! I haven't used white embossing powder for a long time, but now I'll have to pull it out.

Thanks to Tanya for the inspiration and to everyone who welcomed Melissa to the Inky blog! We always appreciate your comments, whether or not they're attached to prizes. (Psst, there will be more opportunities to win again later this month, though...)

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